Manually operated sound reproducer



Aug. 949. ,M. A. sTRuMoR 2,479,790

MANUALLY OPERATED 'SOUND E IEPRODUCER Filed April 27, 1946.

59 3 mm q INVENTOR. MATHEWASTRUMOR 5 -5 BY W AT TORNE Y Patented Aug. 23, 1949 MANUALLY OPERATED SOUND REPRODUCER Mathew A. Strumor, Brooklyn, N. Y.

Application April 27, 1946, Serial No. 665,553

Claims.

This invention relates to sound reproducing devices, and more particularly to devices mounted in toy animals, dolls, etc. which, upon pressing in of a part of the body, cause a sound to be given off.

One object of the invention is the provision of a sound producing device adapted to be used as above-mentioned and to have the sound produced by passing a needle over a sound track.

Thus the sound to be produced may be that particularly characteristic of the toy figure in which the device is mounted. For instance, if the device is mounted in a doll, the sound track will contain a recording of a baby's actual crying of mama; if it be mounted in a dog, the recording will be actually that of the barking of a dog; etc.

The above as well as additional objects will become apparent in the following description, wherein characters of reference refer to likenumbered parts in the accompanying drawing. It is to be noted that the drawing is intended for the purpose of illustration only, and that it is neither desired nor intended to limit the invention necessarily to any or all of the details of construction shown excepting insofar as they may be deemed essential to the invention.

Referring briefly to the drawing, Fig. 1 is a representation of a doll, adapted to have the device of the invention mounted in the body thereof, shown in broken lines.

Fig. 2 is a front view of the device.

Fig. 3 is a. longitudinal sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged plan view, partly in section, of the sound track axial rod, the needle, the diaphragm wall of the slidable cylinder, and the supporting wall of the stationary cylinder, partly in section, which may also be considered a sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig, 3.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on the line 6-45 of Fig. 5.

Referring in detail to the drawing, the numeral Ill indicates a representative figure, in this case a doll, which is adapted to have the device of the invention mounted therein in such manner that, when the stomach is pressed inward, the sound recorded in the sound track of the device will be reproduced as coming from the figure Ill. The device is shown in broken lines at H in Fig. 1.

The device comprises a stationary cylinder l2 having the rear end wall l3 and the flange l4 on its front end; the cylinder 12 is adapted to be anchored or secured within the body of the figure II] in any suitable manner, not shown, so long as it will remain stationary and will be positioned so that the forward extremity of the device, to be described, will lie in or closely adjacent to an accessible part of the body of the figure Ill, such as, for instance, the stomach.

An axial rod l5, which may be cylindrical or of other desired crosssection or conformation, is anchored in or to the wall l3 in any desired manner, such as, for instance, by means of screws IS. A cylinder I1 is in slidable engagement within the cylinder l2, being provided with the enlarged limit stop or flange l8 whose function is obvious. The outer end of the cylinder I1 is closed by a screen or other perforated cover l9 which may be simply secured in any desired manner about the cylinder, or it may be, as shown, secured to a threaded ring 20 adapted to be screwed about the threaded periphery of the cylinder H.

The rear wall 2| of the cylinder IT has an axial opening 22 therethrough and serves as a sounding diaphragm, as will be presently described. A coiled spring 23 within the stationary cylinder l2 normally urges the slidable cylinder I! to its extreme outward position shown in Fig. 3.

The upper surface of the rod I5 is here shown flattened into a plane '24, and an endless groove 25 is cut thereinto, one side of the endless groove being shown at 26 and the other at 21, and both of these are shown straight and parallel. At both ends the grooves are joined by curved sections 28 and 29.

Anchored to the diaphragm wall 2| in any suitable manner is the base of an arm 30 which may be of steel, and whose free end 3| is deformed substantially as shown to extend axially into the groove 25, the extremity of the said free end being sharpened or tapered to form a needle 32.

The groove 26 contains a sound track 21a, indicated by the transverse marks shown in Fig. 4. It is apparent that as the cylinder ll moves inward as a result of pressure applied on the stomach of the figure 10, the needle 32 travels down the groove 26 in engagement with the sound track 21a, thereby reproducing in the diaphragm 2! the recording of the sound track and causing the reproduced sound to pass through the screen l9 to become audible outside the figure 10.

Assuming that the cylinder I1 is forced inward. against the spring 23, as far as it will go, it will carry the needle 32 to substantially the position shown in broken lines at 32a in Fig. 4, and the cylinder I! will have been rotated through a small are. For this movement of the cylinder, it may be desirable that the ring 20 have free rotatable engagement with the cylinder I l, instead of the threaded engagement shown, although that should not be necessary as long as the ring is not locked to the stomach of the figure 10. If, then, pressure on the cylinder I! is withdrawn, the spring 23 will move it outward, and as the needle 32 is in the position 32a it will naturally enter the groove 21, which is smooth and therefore silent, for its return movement.- When the cylinder reaches its outward limit stop, the needle 32 will rest in the position 3212, ready for passage down the track on repetition of the cycle, after the same arcuate rotation of the cylinder I! in the reverse direction.'

As an aid in switching the needle from the groove 26 to the groove 21, and vice versa, if desired, in the connecting grooves'2'8 and '29, additional means may be provided. One form of said means is shown in the form of leaf springs 33 and 3d anchored in grooves cut into the sur face 24, and extending across the end grooves 28 and 29. As the needle reaches the endof its stroke ineither direction, the spring 33 or 34 will act as acam whpn the stroke is reversed, as is obvious from Fig. fl.

The idea of the invention as illustrated and described may of course be carried out in other ways than above set forth. In actual practice, the device Il may be provided with different re cordings on its sound track 21a, according to the kind of toy or figure in which it is to be mounted. Hence-the figure may be made to emit a sound consistent with its nature, instead of merely a squeak or other sound or distant simulation of the sound it makes by nature. Whence itfollows that a child will be far more pleased with his or her toy or doll, especially when it is considered that the sounds emitted by many such articles is hideous and often frightening to the child.

Obviously, modifications inform and structure may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

The needle arm 38)- may be made substantially rectangular in cross-section, that is, in the form of a band which is adapted to flex upwards substantially as shown in broken lines in Fig. 6. Moreoventhetipof the needle 32 may beshaped approximately inthe fashion of the tip of a; semi-cone, rounded around the extremity, with the rounded portion 340 thereofon theright side of the needle (Fig, 6)- and the sharpened surface of the needle point on the left side; Then, the event that-the cylinder ll is-pushed only, say, half-way homeinto the cylinder [2-, and then-released, one of two things will happen to the needle, either it will ride back along the sound track 270! with the rounded portion 34= thereof riding freely over the rough sound track without wearing the latter, or, if the needle should stick inthe track, the flexibility of the arm 30 w-i11= permit the latter to flex upward While the needle extension 31 swings through the are shownin- Fig'. 6 and'assumes the position shown in broken lines. In the latter case the needle will ride back' with the rounded surface 3.421 thereof riding over the sound track without digging into thetrack to damage'the same.

I claim:'

1. A sound emitting device comprising a cylinderhavin'g a rigid member 'longitudinally"mount- 4 ed therein in fixed position, a second cylinder slidably mounted within said first cylinder, the front end of said first cylinder being open, means normally urging said second cylinder outward through said front end of said first cylinder, the rear end of said second cylinder having a wall closing the same and having an opening therein, a rod secured in said first cylinder and registering slidably in said opening, said rod having a longitudinal groove therein containing a sound track, a needle secured by its base to said rear wall of said second cylinder and having its tip registering in said track.

2, The device set forth in claim 1, said rod having a second longitudinal groove spaced from and substantially parallel with said first groove, connecting grooves between said first and second grooves at the ends of the latter, said connecting groves having approximately the shape of an arc of a spiral with the arc of one of said connecting grooves being directed oppositely to that of the other of said connecting grooves whereby when said second cylinder reaches the end of its s-trole in either direction the said connecting groove at that end will guide the tip of said needle toward the entrance to the other of said longitudinal grooves, said second cylinder being free to rotate through an arc.

3'. The device set forth in claim 1, said rod having a second longitudinal groove spaced from and substantially parallel with said first groove, connecting grooves between said first and second grooves at the ends of the latter, said connecting grooves having approximately the shape of an arc of a spiral with the arc of one of said con-' necting grooves being directed oppositely to that of the other of said connecting grooves whereby when said second cylinder reaches the end of its stroke in either direction the said connecting groove at that end will guide the tip of said needle toward the entrance to the other of said longitudinal grooves, said device having releas able locking means interposed in said connecting grooves constraining said needle tip from reverse movement back into either of said longitudinal grooves upon return of said second cylinder after reaching the end of its stroke.- 4. The device set forth in claim 1-, said base of said needle forming an angle with said tip, said base extending from said rear wall of said second cylinder at substantially right angles to the'latter, said base being substantially rectangular in cross s'eotion thereby increasing the flexibility of said base, said needle tip lying in" a plane at right angles'to the wider pair of opposed surfaces of said rectangular base.

5.- The deviceset forth in claim 1, that side of-the tip of said needle facing toward said rear wall of said second cylinder being rounded.

MATHEW A. STRUMOR.

' REFERENhES CITED I he following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS- 

